Ranked, with the working shown

The best train tours in USA

14 hotel-based trips in USA had enough verified data to score; hostel and self-guided rail-pass trips are not ranked here. The ranking below is fully mechanical; here is exactly how it works:

Eligibility: only hotel-based tours are ranked. Trips built around hostels or self-arranged accommodation are left out, since these guides recommend hotel-inclusive tours for the general traveller.
Rail share (35%): the percent of the trip actually on trains, from the itinerary.
Value (20%): price per day against the other hotel-based trips on this page (cheaper per day scores higher).
Data completeness (25%): full day-by-day itinerary, imagery, inclusions, and verified price.
Departure breadth (20%): how many months the operator publishes departures for.

1
Grand National Parks with Yellowstone, Yosemite, and the Grand Canyon Roundtrip from New York City
Amtrak Vacations
68.7
15-day roundtrip Amtrak journey from New York City to three national parks
Rail share
80
Value
79
Completeness
100
Departures
0
15 days · from $3,489 ($233/day)
2
Grand National Parks with Yellowstone, Yosemite, and the Grand Canyon Roundtrip from Los Angeles
Amtrak Vacations
68.4
14-day roundtrip Amtrak journey from Los Angeles to three national parks
Rail share
71
Value
93
Completeness
100
Departures
0
14 days · from $2,819 ($201/day)
3
Grand National Parks with Yellowstone, Yosemite, and the Grand Canyon Roundtrip from Washington, D.C.
Amtrak Vacations
65.9
15-day roundtrip Amtrak journey from Washington DC to three national parks
Rail share
80
Value
64
Completeness
100
Departures
0
15 days · from $3,629 ($242/day)
4
The Halloween Train
Alaska Railroad
59.6
Halloween-themed rail journey from Anchorage to Girdwood with concert
Rail share
50
Value
86
Completeness
100
Departures
0
2 days · from $449 ($225/day)
5
Grand Canyon Express
Amtrak Vacations
59
One-way Chicago to Los Angeles rail trip via the Grand Canyon
Rail share
40
Value
100
Completeness
100
Departures
0
10 days · from $1,569 ($157/day)
6
Grand National Parks with Yellowstone, Yosemite, and Glacier National Park Roundtrip from Washington, D.C.
Amtrak Vacations
58.4
17-day roundtrip Amtrak journey from Washington DC to three national parks
Rail share
71
Value
43
Completeness
100
Departures
0
17 days · from $5,689 ($335/day)
7
Grand National Parks with Yellowstone, Yosemite, and Glacier National Park Roundtrip from New York City
Amtrak Vacations
57
17-day roundtrip Amtrak journey from New York City to three national parks
Rail share
71
Value
36
Completeness
100
Departures
0
17 days · from $5,799 ($341/day)
8
Coast Starlight: Los Angeles to Seattle by Rail
Tailor Made Rail
55
Amtrak Coast Starlight from Los Angeles to Seattle with sleeper and hotel stays
Rail share
45
Value
71
Completeness
100
Departures
0
16 days · from $3,751 ($234/day)
9
Rail & Natural Wonders of Alaska
PTG Tours
54.5
Escorted Alaskan rail journey on three historic trains through glaciers and wilderness.
Rail share
65
Value
21
Completeness
100
Departures
13
13 days · from $5,038 ($388/day)
10
USA Coast to Coast by Rail
Tailor Made Rail
50.4
Fifteen-day rail journey from New York to San Francisco on Amtrak.
Rail share
40
Value
57
Completeness
100
Departures
0
15 days · from $4,153 ($277/day)